Hundreds of Effingham County residents turned out to witness history Saturday afternoon at the ‘Celebration of Champions’ banner unveiling that took place in the gymnasium of the old Springfield Central High School basketball program.

Members of the Panthers and Pantherettes teams were honored as the banners recognized their championships.

Those honored were the boys basketball 1959 District IX Class B Champions, boys basketball 1967 District IX Class A State Champions, boys basketball 1969 District IX Class A Champions, girls 1963 Class A State Champions and girls 1964 Class A State Champions.

Team members, their families and others affiliated with the teams showed up to celebrate the deserving champions.

A special thanks goes out to all those who helped make this possible, including Dr. Franklin Goldwire and former Head Coach Marion Dingle, who coached for the Panthers.